What Type of Engineering is Right for You? - NASA STEM

 

Engineers are problem solvers. They combine the principles of science and math with a sense of creativity and innovation, improving society by putting STEM into action. From building rockets to analyzing nanoparticles, the capabilities of engineers are seemingly endless. The same is true of engineering opportunities at NASA.

National Engineers Week 2023 begins Feb. 19, and to celebrate, we’re exploring the four primary branches of engineering: chemical, electrical, mechanical, and civil. If you’re just being introduced to engineering, it may be hard to know where to begin, so let’s break it down!

NASA’s Space Launch System rocket, with the Orion capsule atop, slowly rolls out of the Vehicle Assembly Building at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on March 17, 2022, on its journey to Launch Complex 39B. Credits: NASA/Kim Shiflett

Chemical Engineering

Chemical engineers rely on the fundamentals of mathematics, chemistry, biology, and physics to conduct research, create systems, and harness energy using chemical processes. In the realm of space exploration, chemical engineers can take on many different roles including researching and designing batteries for manned spaceflight and chemically creating the thrust to launch a rocket into space. 

Dr. David Delafuente is the battery safety technical discipline lead at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, where he's part of a team that designs and develops safe, high-energy-density batteries to support human spaceflight.

"It takes significant effort to design and test batteries to validate they meet NASA's stringent requirements for crewed spaceflight," said Delafuente. "We buy commercial [batteries] and engineer how they're configured, electrically connected, and operated to optimize their usable energy and safety."

In a clean room at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, engineers observed the first driving test for NASA's Mars 2020 rover on Dec. 17, 2019. Credits: NASA

Mechanical Engineering

Mechanical engineering is one of the broadest engineering disciplines. It involves the design, construction, operation, and testing of mechanical systems and machines. Aeronautical, aerospace, and hardware engineering are a few of the many sub-disciplines of mechanical engineering that take place at NASA.

Keith Foster works at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Virginia, as a payload hardware engineer for the Sounding Rocket Program, which conducts short-duration spaceflight missions to collect scientific data and tests technology for satellites and spacecrafts. These rockets typically only spend 5-20 minutes in space and are very cost effective. As a payload hardware engineer, Foster creates parts, systems, and assemblies using the principles of physics, materials, and manufacturing.

Foster has worked on payloads to test inflatable reentry coverings that help protect items returning to Earth from space, as well as a payload testing the reentry parachute design used to land the Perseverance rover on Mars.

In this 2017 photo, engineers monitor as NASA's James Webb Space Telescope is enclosed in a "clean tent" to protect the telescope from dust and dirt during testing at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. Credits: NASA

Aerospace and aeronautical engineering is another branch of mechanical engineering seen at NASA.

Dr. Aprille Joy Ericsson works at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and has used her mechanical engineering and aerospace engineering background throughout her career. She now works as the new business lead for instrument systems and technology.

Ericsson has supported a variety of projects including astrophysics, planetary and Earth science, and recently, the James Webb Space Telescope. Currently, she provides technical leadership for NASA’s small business acquisition of sensors and detectors.

“Mechanical engineering touches so many aspects of building devices,” Ericsson said. “I liked being able to simulate the control methods I develop and eventually able to see how well they perform during spaceflight missions. I also like troubleshooting for problems in the code or algorithm.”

Civil Engineering

Civil engineers focus on the design, construction, and maintenance of human-made structures. Civil engineers at NASA may work as structural engineer for the International Space Station, and help to protect and upgrade the solar arrays that power the station. They may also work with the massive crawler-transporters that carry rockets out to the launch pad prior to liftoff, or in on-site construction and energy conservation management at NASA centers.

Maureen De Vera Dalton joined NASA in 2013 as a civil engineer intern through NASA’s Pathways Program before transitioning to a full-time job. She now works as the senior project manager for Construction of Facilities at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where she has managed facility demolitions, and the refurbishment of Kennedy’s water and wastewater systems. De Vera Dalton also designed and managed a shoreline restoration project following Hurricanes Irma and Matthew.

“A civil engineer’s expertise at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center is important because of the various facilities and structures that support the spaceport daily operations and launch activities,” Dalton said.

Engineering is an extremely rewarding pathway with unlimited opportunities. It is an ever-changing field of innovation and discovery. Interested in becoming an engineer? Visit stem.nasa.gov to discover resources and opportunities to begin your STEM career journey today!

By Megan Hale

Source: What Type of Engineering is Right for You? | NASA